El Rancho Grill - Le Restaurant Tex Mex

Our search for lunch today in the Metz Technolopole ultimately led us to El Rancho Grill - Le Restaurant Tex Mex in the Metzanine, a large shopping area near the Georgia Tech Lorraine building. We first tried a brasserie in a student housing complex, but we didn't have a university card. Next was the clubhouse restaurant of the Garden Golf Metz Technopole, but it was closed for renovations until January 11. A nearby hotel restaurant was too expensive. So....we found ourselves at El Rancho.

El Rancho is the first Tex Mex chain restaurant in France. Founded in 1992, there are 21 El Rancho's throughout France. The restaurant was decorated in bright colors, and sombreros were hung on the walls. The menu offered standard French Tex Mex fare - tacos, burritos, enchiladas, fajitas, along with steaks and barbeque (see http://www.elrancho.fr/carte/appli.htm). I had chili con carne and David had arrachera (beef and fries), both of which were on the Mexico Express daily special menu. Both of us are feeling fine.

Today was a productive day for us. Before heading off to GTL, we bought tickets for our various journeys on the TGV and bought a carry-on bag on sale in the centre ville. David prepared for his classes and I wrote a summary of a chapter I'm writing on early businesswomen in El Paso. In the late afternoon, Jean Sands, a GTL faculty member who is here with her husband Henry Owen, introduced herself and we're planning on having dinner with them tomorrow night.